Controlled Substances News

December 6, 2025

Top Headlines

Where Cannabis Stores Cluster, Emergency Visits Climb

Nov. 28, 2025 Researchers analyzed data from over six million people to see how close residents lived to cannabis retailers. Neighborhoods near these shops experienced higher cannabis-related emergency visits compared with those farther away. The effect was ...

Scientists Studied 47,000 Dogs on CBD and Found a Surprising Behavior Shift

Nov. 28, 2025 Data from over 47,000 dogs reveal that CBD is most often used in older pets with chronic health issues. Long-term CBD use was linked to reduced aggression, though other anxious behaviors didn’t improve. The trend was strongest among dogs whose ...

Why More Cannabis Users Are Landing in the ER with Severe Vomiting

Nov. 27, 2025 Chronic cannabis use is increasingly linked to recurring bouts of vomiting, now officially classified as cannabis hyperemesis syndrome. The new ICD code helps doctors identify cases more consistently and gives researchers a clearer picture of how ...

Scientists Reveal a Hidden Hormone Switch for Learning

Nov. 21, 2025 Researchers uncovered how estrogen subtly reshapes learning by strengthening dopamine reward signals in the brain. Rats learned faster when estrogen levels were high and struggled when the hormone’s activity was blocked. The findings help explain ...

How to Keep Ozempic/Wegovy Weight Loss Without the Nausea

Nov. 18, 2025 Scientists are uncovering how GLP-1 drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy act on brain regions that control hunger, nausea, pleasure-based eating, and thirst. These discoveries may help create treatments that keep the benefits of weight loss while reducing ...

Blocking One Enzyme May Break the Link Between Alcohol and Liver Disease

Nov. 18, 2025 Scientists discovered that alcohol activates a sugar-producing pathway in the body, creating fructose that may reinforce addictive drinking. The enzyme responsible, KHK, appears to drive both alcohol cravings and liver injury. When this enzyme was ...

A Surprising CBD Advance Calms Pain Without Side Effects

Nov. 18, 2025 Researchers developed a new nano-micelle formulation, CBD-IN, that finally gets CBD into the brain effectively. In mice, it relieved neuropathic pain quickly and didn’t cause the usual movement or memory side effects. Surprisingly, the pain relief ...

The Bright Colors in Your Food May Be Harming Your Kids

Nov. 7, 2025 Almost 20% of packaged foods and beverages in the US contain synthetic dyes, often paired with excessive sugar to attract children. These additives have been linked to behavioral issues, yet remain widespread among major brands like Mars and ...

Breakthrough Brain Discovery Reveals a Natural Way to Relieve Pain

Nov. 4, 2025 Using powerful 7-Tesla brain imaging, researchers mapped how the brainstem manages pain differently across the body. They discovered that distinct regions activate for facial versus limb pain, showing the brain’s built-in precision pain control ...

Scientists Discover a Surprising Way to Quiet the Anxious Mind

Oct. 27, 2025 Generalized anxiety disorder affects millions, often trapping sufferers in cycles of fear and isolation that conventional medications barely relieve. At UCSF, neuroscientist Jennifer Mitchell is testing a pharmaceutical form of LSD called MM120, ...

Weight-loss Drugs Like Ozempic May Also Curb Drug and Alcohol Addiction

Oct. 26, 2025 GLP-1 drugs, originally developed for diabetes and obesity, may also curb addictive behaviors by acting on reward circuits in the brain. Early trials show reductions in alcohol intake, opioid seeking, and nicotine use. Though more research is ...

Your DNA May Shape How You Use Cannabis

Oct. 20, 2025 A major collaboration between UC San Diego and 23andMe identified genes that shape cannabis use behaviors. The study linked the CADM2 and GRM3 genes to cannabis use and connected these patterns to more than 100 traits across mental and physical ...

Latest Headlines

updated 11:10am EST

Millions Are About to Choose the Wrong Medicare Plan

Nov. 29, 2025 Millions face Medicare decisions each year, but many don’t take advantage of tools that can save them money and stress. Insurance marketing often overshadows unbiased options like SHIP, leaving ...

Smoking Cannabis With Tobacco May Disrupt the Brain’s “bliss Molecule”

Nov. 15, 2025 Scientists found that people who use both cannabis and tobacco show a distinct brain pattern tied to mood and stress regulation. Their scans revealed ...

How Strong Is Your Weed, Really? Scientists Say Labels Often Mislead

Oct. 23, 2025 Colorado researchers discovered that nearly half of tested cannabis flower products exaggerated their THC levels, while concentrates were mostly accurate. The team’s statewide audit revealed ...

Fentanyl Overdoses Among Seniors Surge 9,000% — A Hidden Crisis Few Saw Coming

Oct. 13, 2025 Overdose deaths from fentanyl mixed with stimulants have skyrocketed among seniors, increasing 9,000% in just eight years. Once thought to affect ...

Scientists Find Brain Circuit That Traps Alcohol Users in the Vicious Cycle of Addiction

Oct. 7, 2025 Addiction often isn’t about chasing pleasure—it’s about escaping pain. Researchers at Scripps Research have discovered that a tiny brain region ...

Nearly Half of Drivers Killed in Crashes Had THC in Their Blood

Oct. 5, 2025 Over 40% of fatal crash victims had THC levels far above legal limits, showing cannabis use before driving remains widespread. The rate didn’t drop after legalization, suggesting policy changes ...

A Single Dose of Psilocybin May Rewire the Brain for Lasting Relief

Oct. 2, 2025 Penn researchers found that psilocybin can calm brain circuits tied to pain and mood, easing both physical suffering and emotional distress in animal studies. The compound works in the anterior ...

Why Gen X Women Can’t Stop Eating Ultra-Processed Foods

Sep. 29, 2025 Researchers found that middle-aged adults, especially women, are far more likely to be addicted to ultra-processed foods than older generations. Marketing of diet-focused processed foods in the 1980s ...

Clear Skin in a Week With This Breakthrough Acne Patch

Sep. 20, 2025 Researchers have created a two-stage acne patch with tiny arrowhead-shaped spikes that deliver healing compounds directly under the skin. Trials showed pimples vanished in seven days, and the ...

Doctors Warn of a Stealth Opioid 20x More Potent Than Fentanyl

Sep. 18, 2025 Nitazenes, a powerful and largely hidden class of synthetic opioids, are quickly becoming a deadly factor in the overdose crisis. Over 20 times stronger than fentanyl, these drugs often go undetected ...

Ozempic, Wegovy and Mounjaro Makes Food Taste Sweeter and Saltier, and That May Quiet Cravings

Sep. 16, 2025 Some people taking Ozempic, Wegovy, or Mounjaro notice that food suddenly tastes sweeter or saltier, and this subtle shift in flavor perception appears tied to reduced appetite and stronger feelings ...

Cannabis Use May Quadruple Diabetes Risk

Sep. 14, 2025 A massive study of over 4 million adults has revealed that cannabis use may nearly quadruple the risk of developing diabetes. Despite some earlier suggestions that cannabis might have metabolic ...

Overworked Neurons Burn out and Fuel Parkinson’s Disease

Sep. 3, 2025 Overactivation of dopamine neurons may directly drive their death, explaining why movement-controlling brain cells degenerate in Parkinson’s. Mice with chronically stimulated neurons showed the ...

Study Finds Cannabis Improves Sleep Where Other Drugs Fail

Sep. 2, 2025 A long-term study following insomnia patients treated with cannabis-based medical products revealed sustained improvements in sleep quality, mood, and pain management over 18 months. Most ...

Cannabis for Coping? Why It May Trigger Paranoia

Aug. 28, 2025 Using cannabis to self-medicate comes with hidden dangers—new research shows these users face higher paranoia and consume more THC. Childhood trauma further amplifies the risks, especially ...

Stronger Weed, Higher Risk? Potent THC Linked to Psychosis and Addiction

Sep. 2, 2025 A sweeping review of nearly 100 studies has raised concerns about the mental health impacts of high-potency cannabis products. Researchers found strong links to psychosis, schizophrenia, and cannabis ...

Don’t Toss Cannabis Leaves. Scientists Just Found Rare Compounds Inside

Sep. 10, 2025 Scientists at Stellenbosch University have uncovered a rare class of plant compounds, flavoalkaloids, in Cannabis leaves for the first time. Using advanced two-dimensional chromatography and mass ...

The Hidden Mental Health Danger in Today’s High-THC Cannabis

Aug. 12, 2025 THC levels in cannabis have soared in recent years, raising the risk of psychosis—especially in young, frequent users. Studies reveal a strong connection between cannabis-induced psychosis and ...

Found in the Trash: A Super Opioid 1000x Stronger Than Morphine

Aug. 1, 2025 A powerful new synthetic opioid, up to 1000 times stronger than morphine, has emerged in Adelaide’s street drug supply, and researchers are sounding the alarm. Nitazenes, often hidden in heroin or ...

Unwanted Pregnancies Surge With Alcohol, but Not With Cannabis, Study Finds

Aug. 1, 2025 Women who drank heavily, even though they strongly wished to avoid pregnancy, were 50% more likely to become pregnant than those who drank little or not at all, according to new research. ...

People With Eating Disorders Say Cannabis and Psychedelics Help More Than Antidepressants

July 24, 2025 A massive global survey has revealed that people with eating disorders often turn to cannabis and psychedelics like magic mushrooms and LSD to ease their symptoms, rating them more effective than ...

Magic Mushrooms Rewind Aging in Mice—could They Do the Same for Humans?

July 22, 2025 A surprising discovery from Emory University shows that psilocin, the active metabolite of psychedelic mushrooms, can delay cellular aging and extend lifespan. Human cells lived over 50% longer, and ...

Parkinson’s Reversal? One Drug Brings Dying Brain Cells Back to Life

July 3, 2025 Stanford researchers discovered that dialing down an overactive enzyme, LRRK2, can regrow lost cellular “antennae” in key brain cells, restoring vital dopamine communication and neuroprotective ...

Synthetic Storm: What’s Really in Your Teen’s Vape — and Why Scientists Are Alarmed

July 1, 2025 Teen vaping is changing fast — and not in a good way. A large national study found that more adolescents are vaping THC, CBD, and especially synthetic cannabinoids, which are often unregulated and ...

Candy Colors, THC Inside: How Cannabis Edibles Are Tricking Teen Brains

June 28, 2025 Teens are being misled by cannabis edibles dressed up like health foods. Bright colors, fruit imagery, and words like vegan make these products look fun, natural, and safe even when they re not. A ...

Clinical Research on Psychedelics Gets a Boost from New Study

June 3, 2025 As psychedelics gain traction as potential treatments for mental health disorders, an international study stands to improve the rigor and reliability of clinical ...

Cannabis Use Among Seniors Surges 46% in Two Years--Study Reveals

June 7, 2025 Cannabis use among older Americans has climbed dramatically, with 7% of adults 65 and older now reporting recent use. This rise isn't just in numbers but also in diversity older users today are ...

Record High: Study Finds Growing Cannabis Use Among Older Adults

June 2, 2025 Marijuana use among older adults in the US has reached a new high, with 7 percent of adults aged 65 and over who report using it in the past month, according to a recent ...

Nearly Five Million Seized Seahorses Just 'Tip of the Iceberg' in Global Wildlife Smuggling

May 28, 2025 Close to five million smuggled seahorses worth an estimated CAD$29 million were seized by authorities over a 10-year span, according to a new study that warns the scale of the trade is far larger ...

Whether It's Smoking or Edibles, Marijuana Can Be Bad for Your Heart, Study Suggests

May 28, 2025 A new study finds that chronic cannabis use -- whether it's smoked or consumed in edible form -- is associated with significant cardiovascular ...